


a spooky little ceremony

by literatiruinedme



Series: I'll be the one [4]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Halloween, Halloween Wedding, Marriage, THEY'RE GETTING MARRIED (MARRIED)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:55:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27311512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literatiruinedme/pseuds/literatiruinedme
Summary: Betty thinks that one Saturday in particular would be a good time for a wedding.
Relationships: Betty Cooper/Jughead Jones, Cheryl Blossom/Toni Topaz, Jellybean Jones/Original Female Character(s), Veronica Lodge/Donna Sweett
Series: I'll be the one [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1779772
Comments: 7
Kudos: 36
Collections: 8th Bughead Fanfiction Awards - Nominees





	a spooky little ceremony

**Author's Note:**

> and the [mood board](https://imgur.com/4rOIMiR)
> 
> Okay, this isn't the end, I'll still be throwing things in under the fic [it's fine](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23240818/chapters/55647685), but tHEY'RE MARRIED NOW AND I'M CRYING I got this idea earlier in the month and ran with it. I hope y'all enjoy this spooky little ibto!bughead moment.

“That's a nice dress,” Jughead said, smiling up at Betty from his place on the couch.

She had on a form-fitting lace dress, the black fabric of the bodice hugging her every curve while the sleeves flowed down, the back half hanging past her fingertips as the front cropped at her wrists. “You like it?” she asked, twirling once to show off the flowy skirt of the dress that spun out around mid-thigh. 

He nodded, finishing the sandwich in his hands as she stalked over, perching herself on the arm of the couch when he had wiped his fingertips on a napkin. After wrapping his arm around her waist, silently urging her into his lap, he continued. “Very Morticia Addams.”

She grinned. 

“What?”

“It's funny you say that.”

His brows furrowed.

“Can I suggest something crazy?”

He nodded slowly, unsure as to where she was going, but willing to hold on for the journey.

“Let's get married.”

A laugh bubbled out of him after he finished sipping on his soda; he passed the can of coke off to her before speaking again. “We're already doing that.”

“No.” Betty set the can down before taking his hand in both of hers. “ _ Today _ .”

His eyes went wide. “Today?”

She nodded.

“But I don't have a suit and- and it's bad luck to see you-” He gasped. “What about-”

“Breathe,” she coaxed, rubbing her thumb over his knuckles. “Don’t torture yourself, kitten,” she paraphrased, mirroring his smile when his eyes widened at the realization that she was quoting the early nineties Addams Family film. His lips pulled into a grin when she leaned forward to kiss his cheek. “That’s  _ my _ job.”

As a smile found its way to his lips, his shoulders relaxed. “Okay,” he breathed. “But-“ He paused.

“Yes?” Betty urged.

“Why today?”

She shrugged a shoulder. “Why not? We’ve been engaged for almost a year and it’s a full moon and a Saturday  _ and _ Halloween.”

He chuckled, leaning up to kiss her lips. “I figured you for a summer wedding person.”

She shrugged. “Honestly, I assumed we would just get married at a courthouse and you can’t tell the season from a room with no windows.”

He smirked up at her. “Did you plan on marrying me in the basement?”

“Is the boiler room of the Burlington municipal courthouse not your idea of romance?”

“Whoa now, I didn’t say  _ that _ .”

Betty chuckled, kissing him before one of them could babble out anything else. 

He smiled against her lips, resting his forehead against her own when they finally broke apart. “Are you going to cut off the flower heads?” he asked, his arm around her waist. 

“No,” she said with a smile. “Though, I was thinking roses and daisies.”

His brows furrowed. “Aren’t you taking care of things?”

“I am.” She nodded, wrapping her arm around his shoulders. “Cheryl’s just backseat driving.”

“You’re okay with that?”

“Yeah, she’s doing the  _ if you even think about your wallet, I’ll bite your hand off _ thing, so I told her that she could take care of details because she knows what I like and she’s letting us use her downstairs.”

“That is a nice venue,” he hummed in agreement. After a moment of contemplation, he looked at her again. “And she was happy with that arrangement?”

Betty waved him off. “You know how she loves to plan things...plus, she’s going to be a total bridezilla whenever she and Toni finally tie the knot, so I really don’t mind her decorating her house how she wants and picking out what we eat.”

He hummed, avoiding her gaze for just a second.

“What’s up?”

“Nothing.”

“You had a look.”

“There was no look.”

“ _ Jughead _ .”

“There was no look.”

Betty raised a brow, quickly breaking him down. “ _ Kitten _ .”

He crumbled immediately. “Toni may have a ring,” he rushed out in one breath. 

Betty’s eyes widened.

“You can’t say  _ anything _ , she’ll kill me if Cheryl finds out. I heard by accident because she knew I have no spine and would cave  _ immediately _ if you asked-“ A sigh escaped him as he rested his head on her shoulder. “Like I just did.”

“Oh, kitty!”

“You can’t tell Cheryl!”

“ _ Never _ .”

His shoulders relaxed as he let out a breath. “Okay.”

She smiled as her hand settled on his neck. “There are no secrets between us; Cheryl and I don’t have any secrets, but I know when to hide things.” A few moments of silence passed between them before she spoke again. “Accidentally?”

He nodded.

“Elaborate, please.”

“JB has no sense of self-awareness.”

A laugh escaped Betty before she hummed in agreement.

“She was talking to Tracy at Ink while I was working with them.”

“Oh god.”

“I know,  _ right _ ?”

“You Jones children are treasures.”

Gingerly, he squeezed her waist. “Thank you.” He sighed happily before relaxing against her once more. “What’s our colour scheme?” he asked softly.

“Black and red,” Betty said with a smile. “I know green is your aesthetic, but I didn’t want it to look like Christmas.”

“Christmas?”

“Do you think I have the power to make the red queen redecorate?”

He hummed softly, smiling to himself. “I like black and red.”

Her thumb grazed his jaw, drawing another soft hum from him. “I knew you would.”

A calm quiet washed over them as they sank further into the couch, just happy to be curled up together. He swallowed thickly before softly squeezing her side. “What time are things happening?”

“Three, so everyone can get drunk and still get home at a reasonable time.”

He nodded, about to speak when she cut him off. 

“JB and Tracy are everyone’s Uber drivers; you’re not allowed to work at all tonight- you’re getting drunk with me and then we’re getting dropped off here.”

“Okay, okay.”

“Good boy.” 

He smiled, leaning up to kiss her cheek before resting his head on her shoulder again. After a deep breath, he relaxed below her. “We get to relax until when?”

“Noon.”

He nodded. After another pregnant pause, he raised his head, kissing her cheek. “Can we go to bed?”

“No sex until tonight.”

“No!” he laughed, shaking his head. “I want to go to  _ sleep _ , horny.”

Betty deflated a little at his words. “Oh.”

He raised a brow as he hummed. “What?”

“Bed sounds good,” she breathed.

“Yeah?”

She nodded, a small smile on her lips. “I want to hold my kitten while he’s still not legally mine.”

He laughed. “I’ve been yours since the moment you saw me.”

“Yeah, but after tonight you’ll need a lawyer to get rid of me.”

“We knew this would end in marriage or a restraining order,” he teased, grinning when she let out a loud laugh.

* * *

“Okay,” Cheryl breathed, capping an eyeliner pen as Tracy finished threading the last of her star pins into Betty's hair. “I think you're ready.”

“You know I'm low maintenance.”

Cheryl scoffed as she helped Betty out of the flannel she'd put on to keep makeup from falling over her black dress. “You roll out of bed like little birds helped you wake up.”

“Hey, my little bird is a total grump in the morning. I help  _ him _ look pretty.”

“That's true,” Tracy said, not looking Betty's way as she leaned down to pick up a brush for JB’s hair. 

“You're hurting me,” JB complained. She laughed when Tracy tilted her chin up forcefully. “Hey!”

“Shut up, little mouse.” Tracy popped her gum before glancing at Betty over her shoulder. “Speaking of, how is the little bird?”

“Trying to remain calm and failing miserably,” Betty sighed, flipping against the pillows as she waved her phone around.

JB rolled her eyes. “How many missed messages?”

“Twenty.”

“Jesus Christ, Jug, get it together!”

“He’s nervous,” Betty chided.

“For  _ what _ ? You two are basically married already. You’re just getting my blessing legally in front of twelve other people. You’re lucky the cap on gatherings is fifteen and we all work together.”

Tracy rolled her eyes before yanking JB’s hair again to shut her up, muttering a sarcastic apology when JB whined.

“You’re being mean!”

“Leave her alone.”

“But-“

“Just remember you’re going to get married too, one day.”

JB glared at her in the mirror. “You say that like you won’t be there.”

“Oh, I  _ definitely _ won’t be in the same room for you for at least a few hours before.” 

“Jerk.”

Tracy finished placing a bobby pin before leaning down to kiss JB’s cheek. “I love you.”

JB hummed, turning to steal a kiss from Tracy before Betty turned away, letting them have their moment as Donna ducked in.

“Dee, you came!” Betty gasped.

“Couldn’t miss the world’s biggest dork snagging a catch like you, Cooper.” Donna set a bag of McDonald’s in front of Betty before wandering over to sit down on Cheryl’s bed. She crossed her legs as she leaned back on her palms, her black suit jacket contrasting sharply against the royal blue shirt she wore, likely perfectly matching whatever dress Veronica had found for the occasion. “How’re you feeling?” she asked, watching Betty carefully unwrap a hamburger, topping it with fries before digging in. 

“Good,” Betty said around a mouthful of food. She chewed and swallowed before continuing. “I can’t believe I’m getting married in, like, thirty minutes.” A happy sigh escaped her. “I’m so excited.” She tossed a fry in her mouth, smiling to herself before she met Donna’s gaze in the mirror. “I’m sure he looks so handsome.”

Something passed over Donna’s face before she smiled.

Betty sighed. “ _ What _ ?”

“He was having a panic when I got here, but yeah,” she nodded. “Very handsome.”

Betty’s eyes widened. “He-“

“Is totally fine,” Cheryl interrupted, setting her hand on Betty’s shoulder without looking up from her phone. “Toni and I forgot he needed shoes. He had a freak-out, but Archie came through.”

Betty gasped, letting herself get distracted. “They’re  _ here _ ?”

She nodded. “He and Josie have been quarantined at Fred’s for the past two weeks.”

“Oh my god, I can’t believe you kept that from me!”

Cheryl grinned, about to speak when her phone buzzed. “Time for one quick trip. Donna-“

“Making myself scarce, don’t worry.” She stood, saluting Betty. “I’ll see you in thirty.”

Everyone chorused their goodbyes as Cheryl leaned down to touch up Betty’s makeup. She finished with Betty’s lipstick after she downed the rest of their burger. “How do you feel, bride of hobo?” she teased, smiling as she carefully smoothed the hairs draining Betty’s face.

“Nervous,” Betty admitted when only the two of them remained in Cheryl’s room.

She cocked her head to the side. “Really?”

Betty nodded.

“I wouldn’t have anticipated that,” she admitted. “You two already behave as if you have a minivan.”

“God,” Betty laughed. “Please, no.”

Cheryl smiled, leaning back against her vanity. “I mean that with love.”

“I know.” She stood, straightening her dress as she looked in the mirror. “Just wild that this is actually happening.”

“I know,” Cheryl sighed. “It feels like just yesterday we were crushing on Disney stars in teen magazines and now you’re basically betrothed.”

“Feels like a lifetime ago.”

“This year was a lifetime.” Cheryl scoffed as she checked her makeup in a compact mirror, fixing the line of her vibrant red lipstick. “Though I must say, I love the idea of the black dress. Very sexy and fun.”

“Hey, a Halloween wedding has to be a spooky wedding or what’s the fun of even having it?”

Cheryl smiled, wordlessly pulling Betty into a tight hug. After a few moments of quiet, she sniffled softly. 

“Cher?”

“I’m sorry,” she breathed, pulling back with a tearful smile. “I’m just so happy for you.”

Betty pulled Cheryl into another hug, smiling when Cheryl clung to her. “I love you.”

“I love you so much.”

Betty squeezed her tightly, something sappy on the tip of her tongue when there was a knock against the door. They quickly separated, a happy smile finding its way to Betty’s lips when she noticed Toni in the doorway, her red suit pulled on over a sharp-looking black button-up. 

“Mon cheri!”

Toni smiled, holding her hand out for Cheryl’s as she turned her attention to Betty. 

“You’re doing the best man thing?” Betty asked, a half-smile pulling at her lips.

Toni nodded. “Gotta get you moving.”

“Okay.”

Cheryl tugged on Toni’s hand. “Can I tell her?”

After threading her fingers through hers, Toni nodded.

Cheryl let out a noise of excitement before kissing Toni’s cheek; she turned to face Betty with a bright smile. “Have you ever heard of a first look?”

Betty’s brows furrowed as she shook her head. 

She bounced excitedly. “Okay,” Cheryl breathed. “Okay, okay- so, since you and Jug have separation anxiety-“

Betty rolled her eyes but didn’t interrupt. 

“We thought it’d be fun to let you two in on a fun little millennial rule bend.”

“Oh, yeah?” Betty asked, sarcasm dripping from her lips.

Toni nodded. “Want to see your guy early?”

Her eyes widened. 

“He doesn’t even know we’re doing it.”

“Oh my god!” Betty breathed. 

Cheryl grinned. “So, downstairs?”

“Please, please, please.”

Toni laughed. “Never thought I’d hear  _ you _ beg.”

Betty ignored her burning cheeks as she reached out for Cheryl’s hand. “ _ Come on _ .”

A chuckle bubbled out of Cheryl before she nodded and led Betty downstairs, her brand new red high top Vans- a gift from Cheryl -padding down the hardwood.

After their feet hit the ground floor, Betty nervously spun the bracelet she borrowed from Jughead, an anniversary gift from Betty to him that she had asked him to lock around her wrist; the sturdy silver replacement for his black zip tie was a comforting weight around her wrist without his fingers anchoring her to the ground. “Where-“ She paused at the sound of his voice, muffled through the doors of the dining room adjacent to the entrance of the house, pulling away from Cheryl and Toni to go knock on the door.

“Hold on!” Sweet Pea called.

“Hey!” Jughead protested.

“Shut up and cooperate.”

“Whatever.”

After a moment of quiet, Sweet Pea called for them to enter. 

Betty grinned as she opened the door, sticking her head in, taking Jughead and his familiar gray beanie in from behind.

“Can I open my eyes?” Jughead asked, clearly bored of Sweet Pea’s games.

“I think you should be a little nicer to your bridal party,” Betty teased. She smiled when Jughead’s shoulders relaxed at the sound of her voice. “Did anyone tell you about what a first look is?”

“No,” he whispered shyly.

Betty hummed, slipping into the room without another word.

His hands fisted before relaxing as she sauntered closer. “You’re not going to pants me and run away, right?”

A laugh escaped her as she shook her head before remembering he couldn’t see her. “Tempting.”

“Oh, yeah, sure.”

She felt butterflies at the adorably sarcastic lilt of his words. 

“I missed you,” he practically whispered.

Betty couldn’t help but grin at the back of his head. “I missed you, too, kitty.”

He straightened at the pet name. “I love you.”

“I know.”

He chuckled, bringing his hands together in front of him. He tended when Betty stopped behind him. 

She bit her cheek, acutely aware of the amount of time Cheryl had spent unnecessarily making sure every inch of her face was perfect. Before she could talk herself out of it, she tapped his right shoulder.

Without preamble, he spun, turning to face her. “Oh my god,” Jughead gasped, eyes watering as Betty took both of his hands in hers. “You look beautiful.”

“You do, too.”

A smile found its way to his lips, making Betty’s eyes water. “Shit, are you-“

She shook her head, her own smile likely just as bright. “No, I’m just really happy,” she choked out.

“Don’t cry,” Jughead chortled, gingerly squeezing her hands. “When you cry, I cry.”

“I know,” Betty sobbed. A laugh bubbled out of her when Sweet Pea passed Jughead a tissue, his gaze focused on the ceiling as he pretended he wasn’t going to cry.

Jughead carefully dabbed under Betty’s eyes, smiling when her shoulders relaxed. “Happy tears?” he confirmed, pulling the tissue away from her now-dry eyes to pat beneath his own.

Betty nodded with a giggle.

“You guys are gross,” Cheryl chided, fanning her face to keep her own tears at bay.

Tracy clung to her arm while Toni stood opposite her, petting Tracy’s hair as she rubbed Cheryl’s back.

“Oh,” Jughead breathed, smiling as he reached into his suit pocket. He fumbled for a moment before pulling out a little plastic blue spider ring. “I-“ He cleared his throat as he reached down for her hand. “I saw this at the grocery store the other day and I thought you’d think it was funny, but I heard you  _ somehow _ didn’t have anything blue on you, which sounds woefully out of character here, but some days are like that.”

“Hey, we somehow managed to forget your shoes, clearly today’s different.”

He smiled up at her. “Must be the full moon,” he teased.

“Oh my god,” Sweet Pea sobbed, heading for the door.

Betty laughed weakly, spreading her fingers out as Jughead slipped the little piece of plastic on her ring finger. She smiled down at the plastic before looking up at his face.

His features were still downcast as his thumb trailed over the back of her hand. “Perfect,” he breathed, mostly to himself.

She smiled, blinking back tears as a wave of emotion suddenly overcame her. 

“Okay,” Toni interrupted, commanding as ever. “Everyone scatter; Betty, give us a few and then it’s your turn.”

“Alright,” Betty hummed, carefully mapping Jughead’s face before reaching out to tuck a lock of hair below the thick fabric of his beanie. “Ready?” she asked, just soft enough that only he could hear.

He nodded, resting his forehead against hers. “Yeah,” he whispered back. “What about you?”

“Hey, I asked you, remember?”

A chuckle escaped him as Toni walked over, resting her hand on his forearm gingerly. “I’ll see you in a couple minutes.”

“I love you.”

He smiled, stumbling back as he kept his gaze pinned on hers. “I know,” he teased before disappearing out of the empty dining area, leaving Betty to her thoughts. 

She drummed her fingers against her side, pausing to look at the blue spider before she smiled to herself. Her nerves were unfounded, she knew that Jughead was the only man for her, but the extra five minutes she had with his hand in hers suddenly dispelled any and all fears her brain could make up. A knock at the door startled her. 

“Hey,” Sweet Pea said, smiling when Betty glanced up from the floor. “Damnit, Cooper, you look fucking beautiful!”

Betty couldn’t help but relax at Sweet Pea’s words. “Really?”

He nodded. “If you weren’t one of my best friends and head over heels for that boy-“

A loud laugh escaped Betty, making him grin. “ _ That boy _ happens to be one of your best friends!”

Sweet Pea shrugged. “We can run away together,” he teased, holding his arm out as he stood in front of Betty. 

“You’d grow bored of me.” She threaded her arm through his, grinning when he straightened as he gave her one last look. 

“I don’t think I’d grow bored of you, but I’m glad you found your guy.”

Betty’s smile softened.

“I’m just his work wife.”

“Oh, of course.”

He squeezed her arm gingerly, leaning down to kiss Betty’s cheek before grabbing the flowers set in a vase of water, waiting for Betty’s trip down the makeshift aisle in Cheryl’s living room. “Ready?”

She took a sharp breath before nodding, accepting the flowers. “I’ve been ready for too long.”

“Lesbians,” he huffed, smiling despite his tone.

Betty squeezed his arm, mock disapproval on her face before he tugged her forward.

“I’m surprised Archie isn’t walking Jughead down the aisle.”

Betty shrugged, a small smile playing at her lips. “The thought occurred to me,” she admitted.

“Good, god.” Sweet Pea reached out for the bottle of hand sanitizer next to the front door; he awkwardly sanitized the one hand before sticking his fingers in his mouth to whistle.

Betty snorted out a laugh, nudging him with her hip. 

“What?”

“You’re funny.”

He hummed, reaching out for a little more sanitizer, awkwardly working the alcohol over his hand before they stopped just shy of the stairs. 

“Are we busting a move to the wedding march or-“ She interrupted herself when she heard the Addams Family theme song begin, drawing a loud laugh from her. 

Sweet Pea smiled down at her before tugging her along. “This song is short and Cheryl insisted you’d love it.”

“Okay, okay,” she sighed, her cheeks already hurting from how hard she was smiling as she let Sweet Pea pull her a little faster. They sped maybe a little too quickly down the aisle, but as soon as her hand was in Jughead’s, all of their friends staring at them as Sweet Pea took his seat, she was grateful for it.

“Hi,” he whispered.

“Hi,” she echoed, her gaze pinned on Jughead’s, his blue eyes impossibly beautiful; she wanted to get lost in his gaze, but JB cleared her throat, reminding her of their situation. 

“We are gathered here today-“ JB began, mimicking the tone of the officiant from The Princess Bride until Jughead shot her a rather sharp look. “Oh,” she said softly. “Kay. Sorry.” 

He nodded, a nervous smile on her lips as he glanced back at Betty. 

JB continued, this time sounding like an actual officiant, talking about supporting one another in sickness and in health and everything else before it was finally time for Betty and Jughead to exchange their vows. 

Betty took a deep breath before she spoke first. “Jughead Jones, I'm definitely not as good at writing out my feelings as my favourite little author, but I love you. I love your messy hair and your irritability and your inability to not start arguments that you know I'll finish for you.” She paused for a brief moment when he beamed at her. “While I will always be your harshest critic, I promise to be your best friend and your ultimate adversary. I promise to deal with your cranky and snappy self when we get old and you inevitably have to start eating healthier because I’m sure the doctors will be all over your inability to eat a salad.” As she felt a knot of anxiety growing in the pit of her stomach, she passed her bouquet to Cheryl before she took Jughead's hands in hers, forcing herself to continue after their fingers laced together. “Even if I'm not by your side, I can still imagine your comments to dumb things I walk past in town or what someone said over the radio or television and, to be totally honest, we turned into an amorphous blob of a couple in under a month, which was really frightening-”

He laughed as he squeezed her fingers, drawing a warm smile to her lips. 

“But if I had to turn into a scary sixties-esq monster, I'm glad it was with you.” She squeezed his hand before continuing. “I expect many years of squabbling and banter and annoyed glances from both of us, but I'm excited to start somewhere, even if it's in the middle of the strangest set of circumstances I'd ever imagined. I'm so happy I got to spend the last seven months hulled up, anxious, with you. Watching the world fall apart recently has been a wild ride, but the little bubble we found ourselves in saved my life. I want to thank you for letting me hold you to me while we figured the whole thing out- and while we continue to figure things out, I'm glad we'll be legally bound to one another. Please remember that your only way out of this is a casket and I won't be afraid to put you there myself.”

“ _ Please _ ,” he teased, grinning when she laughed. 

She continued a moment later. “I love our little makeshift family, but I love you the most and I'm so glad you happened to be within ogling distance of the window at your morbid little store the first day I was in Vermont.” 

He smiled, leaning forward to kiss her before JB dropped a hand on his shoulder, making him turn bright red.

“You're getting ahead of yourself, buddy.” She pat his shoulder.

Jughead swallowed before he nodded, reaching into his pocket before pulling out a folded piece of paper. “I didn't have a lot of time today, but I had been working on stuff since we got engaged and-” He cleared his throat. “I sewed this together.” After straightening out the paper, he looked up, meeting Betty's gaze. “I want to start off by saying that I love you. With the exception of our little found family, I've never loved anyone more.”

Toni scoffed. “Please don't love me the way you love her.”

Jughead grinned as he turned to look at her, fist rested on his hip. “What? No hetero?”

Everyone laughed while Betty reached out to rest her hand on his hip, drawing his attention away from Toni’s well-deserved sass. When he met her gaze again, he softened, suddenly lost in Betty's gaze. She rolled her eyes before grinning softly at him. “Keep going.”

He blinked, looking down at her dress before he looked at his paper. “Right.” He cleared his throat before continuing. “I hope Toni and Archie will forgive me for saying this, but you're my best friend.” A sigh escaped him when Betty threaded her fingers through his, squeezing. “You know my order before I even pick up a menu and you've somehow managed to make me giggle on more than one occasion and you always wake me up with a smile. I'm not an idiot who thinks our whole lives will be rainbows and happy days, but I've been with you on enough of your bad days and you've been with me on mine to know that there's something a little bit better to spending time under the blankets  _ together _ when there's a rain cloud in the bedroom. I hate when you pop out from around corners only to laugh when I scream, but the resulting chase around the house always makes it worth it.” He paused, grinning up at her. “And for the record, you usually end up chasing  _ me _ every time.”

“You love me,” Betty cooed, laughing when he rolled his eyes.

“You're the worst and I  _ hate _ you.”

“That's a lie.”

“Maybe,” he hummed, shushing her as he looked down at his handwritten vows, continuing after another breath. “I love waking up to pancakes or you pouncing on me because you're bored being up by yourself. We get anxious being apart and I can't imagine not spending as much time as we have in a post-plague world-” He smiled up at her when she laughed. “But I'm sure we'll figure it out together, like everything else. I love you more than I can fathom some days and I know I'm a handful, but you have our little found family to turn to in the  _ very unlikely _ chance you somehow forget how to handle me." He nervously readjusted how he held the crumpled and worn paper in his hands before continuing. “But I know that ultimately, you know me better than I do and I look forward to sharing myself with you for the rest of our lives- or at least mine, since as you said earlier, I’m  _ totally _ going to have to deal with high cholesterol and what not since salads are beneath me.” After a shaky breath, he met her gaze again, smiling at her. “I love you and I don't think I could ever stop. You're the only girl for me Betty Cooper and I'm glad that of all the retails stores in all the world, you had to come to the  _ one _ I frequented in Burlington, Vermont.”

The rest of the ceremony passed quickly, the world dulled by the blood thumping in Betty's ears as she stared at Jughead, beaming brightly. 

“Do you,” JB finally said. “Jughead Jones-”

“Wait, he interrupted. “Shut up, we worked this out.”

She glared but didn't interrupt.

Jughead looked Betty in the eyes, smiling softly before quoting Gomez Addams. “To live without you, only that would be torture.”

Betty grinned. “A day alone, only that would be death.”

JB sighed, rolling her eyes. “Emo to the extreme-o, you two,” she huffed. “By the power vested in me by the state of Vermont,” JB wrapped up. “I now pronounce you man and wife; Betty, kiss your husband.”

Not needing to be told twice, Betty shot up on the tips of her toes as she cupped Jughead's face, pulling him in for a long, slow kiss. She was vaguely aware of their friends cheering in the background, but was only able to focus on Jughead's smooth skin below her fingertips. Eventually, she pulled away at the feeling of tears on her cheeks, smiling brightly when she noticed they were both crying.

His forehead rested against hers as his eyes closed, a soft smile on his lips.

Betty grinned, pulling him in for a hug, his face buried in the crook of her neck. “I love you,” she whispered.

He sobbed, holding her closer. “I love you, too,” he choked out. 

She squeezed his shoulders, smiling when he pulled back enough to kiss her once more. 

“Okay,” Jughead breathed. He sniffed before turning to his friends, a watery smile on his lips as he tried- and failed -to remain serious. “This is the only time I’ll say it, so savour the moment,” he grinned before continuing. “Let’s party!”

Their friends cheered as Betty laughed, leaning forward to kiss his cheek after he rolled his eyes. She smiled to herself when he immediately perked up, his eyes softening as he looked back at her. “A drink for my kitty and then some of the delicious, delicious food the girls managed to pull together?”

Jughead nodded, leaning forward to press an open-mouthed kiss to her lips. He jumped back when their friends cheered, practically hiding behind Betty until they calmed down, quickly scurrying into action as they transformed Cheryl’s grandiose dining room for dinner. 

There were a handful of fold-up chairs and tables to be laid out (much to Cheryl’s dismay, something about the furniture not matching having been mumbled under her breath) while the food was brought in, filling the room with the scent of a wonderfully crafted meal.

“Are we doing the honeymoon thing?” Jughead whispered in Betty’s ear. 

She hummed in thought before nodding. “Just at the house, if that’s okay. But yeah, I moved the next ten days around for us so we can spend them at home, locked away with no clothes on.”

He practically purred at her words, nodding after a breath. “I heard there’s a little surprise Toni made for me?”

Betty grinned, nodding as she remembered the garter Toni had upcycled from one of his old flannels, the soft fabric comfortably tight against her thigh under the fabric of her dress. “I thought you’d like that.”

“You know me so well,” he breathed, leaning forward to kiss the dip of her shoulder before whispering softly against her skin. “Cara mia.”

Betty moaned, a breathy giggle escaping her as she waltzed into his arms. “Mon ange.”

He smiled against her skin, holding her tightly to his chest before kissing her cheek. “Unhappy, darling?” he teased.

“Oh, yes,” Betty quipped back, smiling up at him. “Yes, completely.”

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Halloween peanuts <3


End file.
